LAST WEEK: The Binghamton Senators (38-25-5-3, 84 pts.) won two of three road games this past week to maintain an eight-point lead over Philadelphia for the fourth and final playoff position in the East Division.

WEDNESDAY, MAR. 18 @ NORFOLK (5-3 W):

The B-Sens scored three goals in a 2:51 span during the third period to pull away from the Admirals in the 5-3 win. Peter Regin turned in a three-point night (1+2) and Greg Mauldin scored the game-winning goal and added one assist for this fourth straight two-point game. Defenseman Derek Smith also netted one goal and one assist for Binghamton. Shawn Weller recorded an unassisted tally, while Mattias Karlsson chipped in his seventh goal of the season. The B-Sens racked up 39 shots on goal, the most in one game since Jan. 21. Jeff Glass turned away 28 shots to earn the victory in net.

FRIDAY, MAR. 20 @ NORFOLK (4-2 L):

The Admirals responded on Friday night with a 46-31 shot advantage on their way to a 4-2 win over Binghamton. The B-Sens top-ranked power play was only 1/6 on the night. Greg Mauldin buried a power-play marker to get the Senators on the board late in the first period. The goal gave Mauldin a marker in five straight games. Peter Regin assisted on Mauldin’s goal, giving him points in 12 straight games and tying the season-high scoring streak (Karlsson - 12 games). Rookie Zack Smith pulled the B-Sens within one goal midway through the third period with his 21st goal of the year. Norfolk captain Zenon Konopka netted Norfolk’s fourth goal to put the game out of reach. Jeff Glass stopped 42 saves in the losing effort.

SATURDAY, MAR. 21 @ PHILADELPHIA (2-1 W-SO):

The B-Sens and Phantoms meet in a defensive battle on Saturday night, with Binghamton outlasting Philly and winning in a shootout. After a scoreless first period, Rob Sirianni gave the Phantoms a 1-0 lead just three minutes into the middle period with a power-play tally. Left-winger Ilya Zubov answered three minutes later with his 14th goal of the season to make it a 1-1 game. The B-Sens outshot Philadelphia 10-3 in the final period but weren’t able to find the back of the net. Binghamton fended off delay of game call in overtime to send the game into the shootout. Peter Regin potted two shootout markers to seal the victory for the B-Sens. Denis Hamel also tallied in the shootout.

THIS WEEK:

The B-Sens return to home ice for three games to close out the month of March. The Senators face the Philadelphia Phantoms (35-28-2-4, 76 pts.) for the second straight game on Wednesday night in the eighth and final contest of the season between the two teams. Binghamton welcomes the Hershey Bears (44-19-1-6, 95 pts.) to the Arena on Friday night for the final time this season, followed by a visit from the Rochester Americans (25-39-0-7, 57 pts.) on Saturday night.

B-SENS GAME SCHEDULE

WEDNESDAY, MAR. 25 vs. PHILADELPHIA (7:05 p.m.)

FRIDAY, MAR. 27 vs. HERSHEY (7:05 p.m.)

SATURDAY, MAR. 28 vs. ROCHESTER (7:05 p.m.)

VS. PHILADELPHIA:

The B-Sens are 3-2-2-0 this season against the Phantoms, including a 1-1-1-0 record at home. Philadelphia easily handled Binghamton in the last contest at the Arena, a 4-1 Phantoms victory. Denis Hamel scored the lone goal for the B-Sens in that loss. Binghamton did post a 3-0 shutout victory over the Phantoms on Jan. 21, with former netminder Martin Gerber stopping 32 shots. Center Marc Cavosie posted one goal and one assist to lead Binghamton to the victory. Jared Ross (25+32) and Jonathan Matsumoto (23+26) lead the Phantoms offensive attack. Netminder Scott Munroe has 25 wins for the Phantoms, and his .924 save percentage ranks fourth in the league.

VS. HERSHEY:

After Hershey took the first three games in the season series, Binghamton has won the last four contests. The B-Sens have scored four or more goals in each of those four victories. Peter Regin netted his first AHL hat trick (3+1) to lead Binghamton to a 5-4 overtime win over Hershey on Feb. 27. Greg Mauldin tied a career-high with three assists and Denis Hamel chipped in a three-point night (1+2). Hershey forward Alexandre Giroux leads the American Hockey League with 50 goals, 17 more than the second highest goal scorer. Hershey is also home to league’s top assist and point man, as Keith Aucoin has 65 assists and 87 points to pace the entire league.

VS. ROCHESTER:

The B-Sens look to continue their dominate play over Rochester this season. Binghamton has four wins and points in five of six games against the Americans this season, including a victory in all three games at the Arena. Binghamton defeated Rochester by a 4-3 final on Feb. 28 at the Arena. Defenseman Mattias Karlsson collected three assists in the victory and left-winger Ilya Zubov had a goal and two assists. Rookie Zack Smith netted the game-winning goal in the third period. The B-Sens have 28 wins all-time against the Americans, their second highest win total against a single team (Syracuse - 30).

SENS SNIPPETS:

The 38 wins and 84 points that the B-Sens have are the most since the 2004-05 season.

Peter Regin had a point in 12 straight games to tie defenseman Mattias Karlsson for the longest point streak of the season.

Greg Mauldin potted a goal in five straight games and registered two points in four straight contests.

Binghamton has six players with more than 40 points this season.

Blueliner Mattias Karlsson leads all AHL defensemen with 40 assists. He needs five assists to break the franchise record for assists by a defenseman (Filip Novak - 44 assists).

The B-Sens are a perfect 12-0-0-0 when scoring four goals in a game.

B-SENS LEADERS:

POINTS: Zubov (14+35=49)

GOALS: Hamel (24)

ASSISTS: Karlsson (40)

POWER-PLAY GOALS: Hamel & Hennessy (11)

SHORT-HANDED GOALS: Bois & Hamel (2)

GAME-WINNING GOALS: Hamel (5)

SHOTS: Hamel (215)

WINS: Glass (14)

SAVES: Glass (896)

GAA: Glass (3.16)

SAVE PERCENTAGE: Glass (.905)

REEBOK/AHL PLAYER OF THE WEEK NOMINEE:

Center Peter Regin was this week’s nominee for the Reebok/AHL Player of the Week. Regin registered one goal, three assists and a +2 rating in three games last week. He also scored two shootout goals to seal Binghamton’s win over Philadelphia.

B-SENS PRACTICE SCHEDULE:

Tuesday, Mar. 24 10:30 @ BCVMA

Wednesday, Mar. 25 10 a.m. game-day skate @ BCVMA

Thursday, Mar. 26 10:30 @ BCVMA

Friday, Mar. 27 10 a.m. game-day skate @ BCVMA

Saturday, Mar. 28 10 a.m. game-day skate @ BCVMA

*All practice times and locations subject to change without notice*

B-SENS PROMOTIONAL UPDATE:

The Dr. Seuss hat giveaway, a promotion originally scheduled for March 27, has been cancelled.

B-SENS ON THE AIR:

All Binghamton Senators’ games are broadcast on 680 WINR-AM and 1430 WENE-AM. Tune in 30 minutes before game time for Countdown to Faceoff with Grady Whittenburg, Voice of the B-Sens. Fans can also tune in to B-Sens’ games via webcast or streaming video cast at www.ahllive.com.

B-SENS TICKET PACKAGES:

2009-10 full and half-season tickets are on sale. For information on ticket packages contact the Binghamton Senators’ executive office at (607) 722-SENS.